Athena Forlorn
by Kitty-hiime
Summary: Soon after Ultimecia's defeat, Quistis finds herself lonely with nothing to distract her- and as Garden is left with no purpose or financial means, she agrees to see what can be done...never suspecting she'll discover what the sorceress left behind.
1. The Aftereffects

**Disclaimer: I don't own FFVIII or any of it's chars...yet...mwhaha...one or two of the chars in here are mine though.**

**Author's note: This is my first fic...Quisty was always my favorite character, and it looks like she's the one who would end up the most unhappy at the end...no fair! So, since the pen is mightier than the gun blade, here goes! Please R & R...that way I know if people are enjoying this and what not, and what changes to make; I feel bad now for all the people whose stories I read and then didn't respond...(cries)**

Athena Forlorn

Chp. 1

Quistis Trepe squeezed her way past several groups of chattering students and SeeDs in the crowded cafeteria, absentmindedly searching for her one friend whose appearances here were as perfect as clockwork. Finally spying Zell in a far off corner, she carefully made her way over, refusing to resort to the childish pushing and shoving methods employed by the other inhabitants of Balamb Garden. With a rather frustrated sigh she perched on one of the cafeteria's conventional plastic chairs, appearing completely lady-like in spite of her simple blue jeans and long sleeved blue shirt, hair held up by clips as usual. Disturbed, she looked on as Zell attempted to coat a precious hot dog in enough ketchup to entirely cover the bun.

"Yo Quisty! What's happening?"

He didn't bother to look up as he finally put the (now nearly empty) ketchup bottle on the table and picked up his food, trying to keep any of the condiments from staining his training gloves in the process. Quistis sighed and cupped her chin in her hand, leaning against the table.

"You know, I really do hate to admit this, but I'm actually...bored." She told him, gazing about the brightly lit room. "Ever since we managed to defeat Ultemecia, no one has had any requests for SeeD. I was grateful for the rest, but it's been three entire weeks! It used to be that I would have been busy with lesson plans, but since I'm not an Instructor anymore..."

Zell finally managed to glance up, the hot dog halfway to his mouth and dripping ketchup onto the paper plate sitting on the table. He gave her a concerned frown before devouring half the hot dog in one bite.

"Welf...'aybe ew shud-"

"Please Zell...chew, swallow, then talk." Zell paused for a moment, obliging.

"I was saying, well, maybe you should apply for an Instructor's permit again, if you miss it so much and all...You know that all of us are gonna support you."

"_We_ support you Ms. Trepe!!" Came a shout from behind her. Startled, Quistis turned around to see two boys who had been sitting at the opposite table, now on their feet and saluting her, dewy eyed. "We just knew that you missed us Ms. Trepe, as much as we've missed you!" The other boy nodded, a faint shade of red. "W-we'll go to He-headmaster Cid r-right now, to sp-sp-speak on your behalf!" They turned and raced out of the cafeteria, tripping over chairs in their eagerness, and leaving their friends flustered.

Zell watched them go with a slightly cheeky grin, which twisted the tattoo on the side of his face so that it was more jagged than usual. "Man Quisty, I gotta say I'm jealous...So what's it like having your own fan club?"

Quistis rolled her azure eyes at his reference to the 'Trepies,' an expanding group of students who paid her as much homage as the ancients did any goddess. She was spared from answering however, when Zell suddenly leapt up, his expression changed to one of surprise and pleasure. "Lily!" He cried, jogging over and giving the pig-tailed girl a one armed hug, which would probably have crushed her slight form if he hadn't been so careful. "You're off library duty early today!"

They seated themselves at the table, and Lily gave a soft sigh, reaching for the paper napkin dispenser. "Of course I'm off early today Zell...you said that we were going to have dinner at your mother's house tonight, remember? I'm a bit nervous, but I suppose it's about time..." She wiped a smear of ketchup off of Zell's cheek with one of the napkins, then suddenly turned stern. "You didn't forget, did you?"

By the look on his face, Zell obviously had. He gave a nervous laugh and waved one of his large hands around awkwardly. "No way, of course not Lily! Heh, we can leave right now if you'd like."

"But aren't you full? You've just eaten for Shiva's sake! Quistis, how many hot dogs did he have!?"

Quistis smiled. "I'm pretty positive that Zell will be able to eat his mother's cooking, regardless of how many hot dogs he's eaten."

"Hmm...that's true. He does seem to have a trash compactor in place of a stomach. Well, you're just a growing boy!" She reached over and attempted to ruffle up Zell's blond hair, made all the more difficult by the gobs of gel he must be using every morning. "Hey hey hey!" He cried, dodging backwards, "Don't mess with the 'do!" Lily giggled and grabbed his hand, dragging him up with her, before waving a goodbye to Quistis as they made towards the cafeteria doors.

Zell turned around for a moment to walk backwards, cupping his mouth with his free hand as he shouted; "Yo Quisty! Are you gonna be ok here on your own?" Quistis blinked at him, surprised at his seemingly uncalled for concern. She put her hands on the table in front of her and stood up. "Of course I will...I think I'll go looking for one of the others right now- perhaps they will have discovered some new and sinister plot to pilfer the Garden's supply of GF's and hotdogs..." she said, with only a slight touch of sarcasm.

"Umm...Rinoa was reading in the library when I signed out." Lily told her. "She might still be in there." Quistis nodded curtly. "Alright then, thank you. Now go and have fun you two!" She crossed her arms and smiled as the couple left the cafeteria, headed towards the garage...Lily wouldn't want to walk after such a long day working.

It was always amusing to see the loud, flamboyant, almost childish Zell tag along after the cute yet quiet bookworm like an overzealous puppy dog. He had been so nervous when he asked Lily out for the first time that his face color had just about matched that of his cherry red shoes. Not that he had anything to worry about; it was well known gossip (in the library circle, at least) that Lily had her eyes set on him for quite a while. Sometimes, when Quistis saw them walking together in the quad or in front of the dorms, she felt a small, dull ache in her chest. She felt it now as well, but regained control and pushed it away as quickly as it had come.

--

With a metallic "Vwoosh", the library doors slid open for Quistis and she strode in, turning her head slightly from side to side, searching for Rinoa. Really, out of all the people Quistis was closest to, Rinoa was not the first on her list. It's not that she didn't like her, just that they too frequently had differences of opinion...alright, attitude as well. Too often, the bubbly Rinoa seemed less friendly to Quistis and more immature than anything else. Granted, she had improved greatly recently, only throwing one small tantrum when Headmaster Cid informed her that her dog, Angelo, was not to be allowed inside Garden...she won that debate in the end, as well.

She would probably feel more comfortable having some tea with Squall or engaging in some long overdue "girl talk" with Selphie, or even a game of Triple Triad with the mild mannered Irvine. However, Squall had disappeared at least an hour ago and was no where to be found, something Quistis had learned long ago meant that he didn't WANT to be found. As for Selphie and Irvine...they had disappeared too, together. Quistis didn't have the courage to see where THOSE two had ended up. For the moment though, Quistis was bored enough that a potted plant would have made good company, and under the hypothesis that Rinoa was currently more mature than a potted plant, she was the best choice. In truth, it did seem that the cheerful girl was going out of her way to improve her friendship with Quistis, something Quistis was willing to give her credit for.

Finally, she found Rinoa seated at one of the long pine tables in the back, several books tossed next to her in a haphazard pile. Rinoa had the tip of her index finger on one of the pages and was deeply engrossed in whatever it was she was reading, therefore failing to notice Quistis' approach until she was standing right behind her.

"Hi Rinoa...what is it you're reading?" Rinoa jumped about a foot out of her chair, her book falling to the table with a clatter. "Eek!! Oh...Quistis, it's you..." Rinoa turned red, embarrassed, as she picked up her book again and flipped through a few pages, finding her spot. Quistis laughed quietly. "Sorry for frightening you." She picked up one of the other stray books on the table and searched for its title. "Bippity Boppity Boo...Sorceresses and What They Can Do to You...who wrote this trash?"

Rinoa looked up, eying the book warily. "Yea, that one's not very good at all..." she shook her head, her dark hair swaying back and forth. "This one here is much better at least...not like that, that...bleh!" She said, sticking her tongue out at the other book. Quistis rolled her eyes just a little. "Well, what's the one you're reading now?"

"Umm...It's...lessee...The Life and Times of the Most Misunderstood People of Our Era: Sorceresses." Rinoa smiled brightly at Quistis, who raised an arched eyebrow- in her opinion, that book seemed just a tad bit slanted as well. Still, she couldn't blame Rinoa for choosing it over the last one. "Rinoa, if you don't mind me asking, exactly why are you reading all these sorts of books right now?"

Rinoa fingered the two necklaces she wore on the silver chain around her neck, a nervous habit of hers. One of which was Squall's ring, which Rinoa was supposed to have returned after Zell made a copy of it for her, yet somehow she had never gotten around to it. Not that Squall minded so much anymore...

"Er...umm...well...I just, you know, wanted to know how many there have been, and what sort of people they were, and what kinda things they did...you know..." she mumbled, so quietly that Quistis had trouble fully understanding her.

"And how people saw them as well, I'm assuming."

"Yea...something like that."

Quistis smiled at Rinoa in understanding. Ever since Rinoa had been forced to become a sorceress, she had been nervous about what people would think of her, especially her close friends. The five of them had quickly dispersed her fears, yet could do little to quell her doubts about the other members of the Garden, and the population of the rest of the planet, for that matter. Rinoa smiled back.

"Not all of them were seen as terrible evil things which needed to be killed. Some of them actually did things like use their powers to help people! You know, protect the defenseless, save the endangered, rescue kittens stuck in trees! Or...um...whatever good things, I guess. People actually liked them too. Although, deep down, people always had their suspicions..." She sighed for a moment, looking depressed, then suddenly bounced back.

"Oh, Quisty, I've been meaning to ask you something! I've been thinking lately...and I kinda remember how when we were out traveling, you know, all of us together, and we had to fight...I could never really fight as well as the rest of you. I just wasn't as well prepared, I suppose. So, I was wondering, do you think I could start taking some classes here? I mean, I don't want to become a SeeD, but I think that if I learn more, then I'll be more ready for anything that comes our way. Besides," She added quickly, tucking some of her hair behind her ear in another nervous gesture, "I should probably learn more about my magic, and how to control it, in case..." She didn't finish her sentence.

Quistis nodded. "Of course. I don't see why not. I suggest that you mention this to Squall...He can help you to enroll."

"Thanks! Oh, hey, umm...I've also been kinda wondering...don't you think we've been here too long? Stationed at Balamb, I mean. Shouldn't we be, like, out there fighting baddies and stuff?" Quistis frowned in irritation and tucked several loose strands of her own blond hair behind her ear. "Yes, I think so as well, but I don't know what it is we could do. We've defeated Ultemecia; Matron has returned to exactly what she was; and the Galbadian Empire is starting to fall. There just isn't any use for mercenaries recently." Quistis shrugged and smiled at the irony of the situation: This calm was exactly what Garden's goal had been to achieve, and now look at the trouble it was causing. A nearby voice interrupted Quistis' thoughts.

"This lack of action is exactly what is being discussed right now." Xu had just brusquely entered the library, wearing as always her complete uniform. Quistis respectfully stood at attention, and Rinoa nervously followed, after a moment. Rinoa bit her lip, not sure if she would be looked at reproachfully for speaking right now, (doing ANYTHING in a military base when she was still technically a "civie" seemed to be enough to get her scolded these days), but decided she would make the venture anyway. "Umm...Xu, how much longer till you're going to be finished? Squall's with you, right? There's something I'd like to talk to him about, if it's not, um, too much trouble..." She said, her voice getting quieter as she went on. Xu shook her head crisply, her short hair swishing back and forth.

"We still haven't managed to decide on anything yet, that's why I am here. Quistis, Squall and the Headmaster request your presence in the cockpit." Quistis furrowed her brow, taken slightly aback. "Just me?" "Yes, you're the only one they asked for."

To be honest, Quistis couldn't remember the last time that there had been any sort of meeting without Irvine, Selphie, Zell, and even Rinoa included...after the SeeD ball, she supposed, when it had just been her and Squall. No...that most certainly didn't count. She had just pulled rank on him that night.

Rinoa gave a little sniff, probably offended that Squall hadn't asked for her to go too. "Well, ok then. Bye bye Quisty! Tell Squall to meet me in the cafeteria as soon as he's done, ok?" She wagged a finger at Quistis, as though reprimanding her. "Don't forget now! I really need to talk to him!"

"Alright already...I won't forget Rinoa, don't worry. I'm sure that Squall would much rather be here with you than in a meeting anyway." _Though I'm not quite sure why._ She couldn't help but add to herself. _Oh well, I suppose that's what the poets are speaking of whenever they talk about the 'power of love.' Oh well...as long as he doesn't neglect his duties, he can do whatever he wants._

Quistis followed Xu out of the library and towards the elevator which was the hub of Garden's circular shape. As they silently walked, she couldn't help but feel a surge of pride at Squall, HER student's, accomplishments. He was now the commander of all Balamb Garden's SeeDs...and that whole saving time and the world thing was a nice addition to his resume as well. Quistis knew that nearly all of that was Squall just using his natural born talents, yet as his teacher, she must have done SOMETHING right, right? This thought made her frown. Even though it was her student that had excelled, (and even Seifer had excelled, in his own twisted way), they had still ended her teaching career. It just didn't make any sense to her...


	2. Reality Check

**Disclaimor: FFVIII is not mine, nor are any of the chars in it. FFXVI however, might be mine...only time will tell!**

**Author's note: Yay!! Chp 2 is here! Not sure if anyone cares yet... but I can dream, can't I? Oh, btw, if you're a Kenshin fan, go check out my twin sisters story "The Art of Misconception" by Maids of Lorraine ...I'm pretty sure that's her online name...it's really really good! -You have permission to harrass her about working more on it, btw :p-**

* * *

Quistis leaned against the sheer elevator wall, her arms and legs crossed, silently waiting to reach their floor, while Xu once again showed off her immaculate posture. There was a metallic 'ping!' and the doors slid open, revealing the 3rd floor. Exiting, the two women walked to the center of the room, (which had once been Headmaster Cid's office until Squall, Irvine, and Rinoa had learned that the Garden could fly, at which point it became the access point to the cockpit), and stood on the grey metal platform which was there. The platform lifted them up, buzzing slightly, as it took them to where the others were waiting.

Once Quistis and Xu stepped off of the platform, things got a little crowded. Already there was Headmaster Cid, Nida the pilot, Dr. Kadowaki, and of course Squall. To Quistis' concern, each of them appeared to be rather...anxious. Already worried about what could possibly need her assistance, things were not looking up. Although Squall, at least, did seem to relax a smidgion when he saw Quistis, probably just relieved to have one of his few close friends there. Or for Squall, as close as close could get...

"Excellent, now we can finish this." With a frustrated sigh, Squall leaned agianst the nearby wall and ran a gloved hand thru his brown hair, which he was stubbornly refusing to cut- it was now grazing his shoulders in the back. Quistis crossed her arms, becoming more confused by the moment. "If you don't mind me asking, exactly what do you need me for? I'm just a SeeD, I really can't think of any reason for you to need me more than any of the other SeeDs here."

"Not at all true." Said Dr. Kadowaki, reaching up to straighten her glasses. "You helped me to take care of the students when Squall first became our leader, and were a driving force in their protection. You led the Gate Team in the first attempt agianst the Sorceress, not to mention the obvious fact that you fought agianst Ultemecia. Besides...Squall also has told me that you were the one who finished Adel off, when he and Selphie were on the verge of passing out." Dr. Kadowaki smiled, her eyes twinkling mischeviously, as Squall frowned at her dissaprovingly. "Now now Squall, you know to give credit where credit is due. As it is, Quistis, it seems that the four of us are somewhat...divided upon a rather important issue. It looks to me like you're going to be the tie breaker."

Quistis frowned, as confused as ever. '_I wasn't allowed to continue with my Instructing because I LACKED leadership abilities, yet from everything they have just said...oh to Ifrit with it all! Solve the issue at hand now, mope later.' _

"Well, what seems to be the problem?"

Squall put his head in his hands and groaned. "Headmaster, you explain it." He muttered, slowly sliding down the wall until he was sitting on the floor, his knees up for lack of space. He had only just turned 18 after all, and was exhausted from being overworked. (He had even missed part of the surprise party Rinoa and Selphie had thrown for him, something they were still sniffing about.) Headmaster Cid cleared his throat and folded his hands.

"Er...All right. Well then my dear, I'm sure that you recall what the purpose of Garden is."

"To defeat the Sorceress." She responded automatically, vaguly wondering what the Headmaster was getting at.

"Yes, that's right. And we have managed to defeat and destroy every Sorceress known." At this, Squall looked up, his blue eyes blazing. Headmaster Cid quickly corrected himself. "Every Sorceress known to pose a sinifigent threat to the human race, that is. They aren't all so bad, really." Squall looked back down agian, yet Quistis had known him long enough that she could see he was still upset with Headmaster Cid for his slip-up. The subject of Rinoa was always a touchy one, Garden harbouring a known Sorceress. Still, one would think that Headmaster Cid would understand more than anyone, since his own wife had once been a Sorceress herself.

Headmaster Cid rolled back and forth on the balls of his feet, continuing. "Anyways, since SeeD was created to fight all of the evil Sorceresses, and we have since accomplished that goal, then there is, strictly speaking, no need anymore for SeeD, am I correct?"

"Well...yes, in that sense."

"And if that is the case...Well, what is the purpose of Garden itself?"

At this, Quistis' mouth went dry. She now knew where this conversation was headed, and she liked it about as much as playing tag with a cactaur. "To train SeeD."

"Correct." Headmaster Cid stopped rocking and began to pace back and forth instead. "By using the power of deduction my dear, you can come to a single, reasonable, conclusion."

"You're planning to shut down the Garden!? No, please, Headmaster you can't! Garden means everything to me! It's my home, my family, my whole world!" Even as she said it, Quistis realized how very sad this was, that if she were forced to leave Garden she would be left with...nothing. Another thing to ponder in the late hours of the night, while she lay still awake in bed. For the moment however, it was time to concentrate on the issue at hand: keeping Garden operational. Dr. Kadowaki smiled at her. "I think that you've been spending too much time with Zell lately Quistis, you're starting to become emotional. Not at all like you. Now please, calm down. We are only here to discuss if it will be closed or not, nothing is final."

Quistis turned a slight shade of pink, but fought it down and took a deep breath. "Yes, of course, please excuse me. -ahem- Well...shall we start?"

Headmaster Cid jumped right on the ball. "Garden takes an enormous amount of money to run; food, books, salaries, we just don't have it. It used to be that SeeD members would recieve a commision and we would receive our pay, but with Adel and Ultemecia gone and the Galbadian Empire crumbling, SeeD is no longer needed. Our resources are drying up. We don't even have NORG to rely on anymore, not that I would go to him, that damn slimy piece of-"

"Not in the presence of ladies." Interrupted Nida, gesturing at Xu, Dr. Kadowaki, and Quistis.

"Oh, right, sorry..."

Squall stood and placed his hand on his hip, head turned slightly to the side. I know that we have defeated Ultemecia...I know that more than anyone. I am also well aware that Galbadia is falling. But I also know that there will always be something to fight, and there will always be something to fight for. Rinoa...has recieved Adel's power, and Matron had once recieved Ultemecia's. The...present versions of them are safe, but I'm worried about Sis. That is, Ellone. Someone could still try to come after her. Perhaps she has even recieved her power from a third Sorceress. We can't prove it wrong. And even if all three of them never have to worry about anything ever agian, there are still a thousand other reasons that we might need to fight, and I want to be ready for them." Quistis was slightly surprised...such a long speech was still uncharacteristic of Squall. Xu was nodding. She didn't have to say anything, she agreed completly with all that Squall was saying.

"And as for the students," Dr. Kadowaki added, "to many of them this is the only home they know. If Garden were shut down, where would all the children go? They would be forced to wander the streets, resorting to using the skills we taught them to steal and mug from citizens just to survive. Not at all a pleasent future." Quistis sighed. She almost wished that she didn't agree with Kadowaki. "I don't know what I have to do," she said, "but I will do anything to make sure that this Garden stays open."

Nida took a step back as suddenly everyone turned to him for his opinion, feeling very out of place. Unused to the attention, he turned red. "Er...um, well...I hate to say this, but even if Garden closes, I'll make it ok. I'm a pilot now. I could go to FH, teach them what I know, make my way there...Still...If we could, um, well what I mean to say is, if we don't HAVE to shut the Garden, I don't think we should. I don't want to, that is..."

Headmaster Cid sighed. "One for, three agianst, and one not-quite-sure. Well, all right. Squall, you've won, Garden shall remain, somehow, open." Joy flooded into Quistis' heart, yet Headmaster Cid wasn't quite finished yet. "As this is the case, there is only one other matter which must be discussed."

"What?"

"My resignation."

**A/N: Reviewers receive one free entry into Garden's annual hotdog eating contest, hosted by Selphie. Last years champion: Zell XD Good luck!**


	3. Changing Hands

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Final Fantasy VIII characters, which means that it's extra awesome that I can control everything they do here, like the puppet master!! Mwhahahaha

**A/N: Well, I've been here at college for like, 3 days now...scary...means I can't update often, but lucky for me since I've already written the entire story and it only needs to be typed that does help. I just hope that there are still people who do read this!! Or else there is no point in me doing it...sniff**

**Chp. 3**

**Change of Hands**

Xu gasped. Nida's eyes were so large they were about ready to pop out of his head. Even Squall looked stunned. "You're quitting?!" he asked, with just the slightest hint of abandonment in his voice. The Headmaster shook his head.

"Not quitting, retiring. I'm getting old you know, this is just too much of an adventure for me. All this flying around nonsense, being attacked all the time...it's not good for my heart. (At this, Dr. Kadowaki nodded.) Besides, I want to be able to stay with my wife." He smiled happily. "We plan to reopen the orphanage."

Quistis smiled widely and clasped her hands. "That's wonderful! You have to write and let us know if you need any help in the restoration. I can't wait to see it! Oh...but who is going to be our new Headmaster?"

"The only one around here who properly knows how to maintain and run Garden, of course." Headmaster Cid gave a little bow. "Xu."

Squall breathed out a sigh of what sounded suspiciously like relief. Probably he had been worried that yet another duty was about to fall onto his shoulders...Rinoa was frustrated enough at their lack of 'quality time'.

"Xu has helped me to manage the Garden for just over five years now." Continued Headmaster Cid. "And it is my honest belief that she is ready to take over."

Xu snapped to attention and saluted Headmaster Cid respectfully. "I shall do my best, Sir." She promised, her face utterly masked over any possible surprise or joy she felt over her new post. "Good. Quite excellent." Said the Headmaster, nodding. "Now, I think that I shall go spend part of my last day here napping...today has been rather exhausting. Good day to you all." He stepped onto the grey platform and was whisked down below.

For a moment, everyone left simply stood, slightly shell-shocked. Recovering quickly, Nida and Dr. Kadowaki started to applaud, with Quistis and Squall joining in. "Alright Xu! Way to go!" Cheered Nida. Xu rewarded him with a rather uncharacteristic blush, yet only for a moment.

"Ok, ok, thank you, you can stop now, we have work to be done. I can't do this all on my own. Therefore, my first act as Balamb Garden's new Headmistress is to appoint Quistis Trepe as Assistant Headmistress. She is to fulfill all of my old duties... And don't worry Quisty, I promise not to send you on impossible hot dog quests at two in the morning." Xu added with a wink.

"...Excuse me?"

"Forget about that...well, will you accept the position?"

Although ironically more worried by the idea of having to search for ever elusive hot dogs at 2 AM than shocked over her sudden change of fate, Quistis nodded. "Of course I will."

"Now wait here just one moment! You didn't clear this with me first, and I have a job for her to do."

"Oh?" Xu turned to face Squall, raising an eyebrow. "I haven't heard about this. Not to mention, she's my assistant now, what makes you think that you can steal her away?"

"I'm in charge of all SeeDs," Squall reminded her, "and until Cid is_officially_ no longer Headmaster, which is tomorrow, Quistis is a SeeD. Therefore, if I give her a mission, she must accept."

Xu rolled her eyes, defeated by the loophole. "Fine, whatever, give it to her. See if I care about the attempted undercut of my future authority." Quistis laughed silently at this, but stopped the moment that Squall addressed her:

"Quistis Trepe, you understand that Balamb Garden is not in an easy situation." He was standing straight and his face was stern, a look which Quistis hadn't seen now for some time. It made her act more serious too. Squall continued. "Obviously, the other Gardens, Trabia and Galbadia respectively, must be facing a similar plight. It would be safe to assume that their headmasters have considered what we have just discussed: Whether or not to continue their operations. Your mission is to select two companions, and to travel to the Gardens for the purpose of discovering their course of action, and afterwards to report back here promptly with your report." He saluted, and she returned it, but then broke formalities and asked "Squall, why are you assigning me and two companions? You know perfectly well that two third years could do that, let alone myself, even on my own. So why don't you just send out a couple of students who could do with the practice?"

Squall smiled at her. "Always the teacher I see. If you must know, Zell says that you're bored. I know it's a simple task, but it does need to be done, and at least this way there's a chance that you and whoever goes with you could face a monster or two in the wild again. The training center is just too easy. Besides, the change in scenery would do you good."

Quistis rubbed her temple with her fingers, frustrated. "I had forgotten how good Zell was at gossip. You've been locked up here for hours, yet he still managed to find some way to tell you all that. Well, alright then...myself and two others hm? I suppose that you have to stay here?"

"Of course. I appreciate the thought, but Xu and I have to find a solution to our financial problems. Besides, out of all the others I'm probably the least likely to succumb to, what is it called, cabin fever?"

Nodding at the truth of the statement, Quistis pondered quietly. "I'll definitely take Selphie then. You know how she is when she gets cooped up too long, and you won't want her causing trouble when you're distracted. Actually, now that I think about it she probably wants to see how the repairs are coming to Trabia Garden. Rinoa can stay here, there's something that she wants to work on with you anyways. So that leaves Zell or Irvine...hmm..." She thought for a moment. "I suppose I ought to leave Zell with Lily, and really Irvine would throw a fit if Selphie went anywhere without him. He's familiar with Galbadia Garden, so it makes the most sense. Selphie and Irvine then." She concluded.

Squall walked past Nida and switched the intercom on. Three familiar chimes rang out, so that the entire Garden paused long enough to listen to Squall's message. "Selphie Tilmot and Irvine Kinneas, please report to the docking bay on floor two at 0900 hours tomorrow morning." He paused for effect, then gave a rather uncharacteristic grin. "You will be taking the Ragnarok." Three more chimes, message ended. Quistis could just see Selphie screaming for joy, jumping up and down at the last section of the message. It was a somewhat scary thought.

"We're taking the Ragnarok!?"

"Why not? It doesn't get much use, since Selphie and I are the only ones who really know how to pilot it, and it will make Selphie happy. Besides, you really can't walk the whole way, otherwise you wouldn't get back in time to start your Assistant Headmistress' duties, and I wouldn't want to have to deal with the consequences of that." Squall nodded to Xu, who looked rather annoyed, having caught the reference. "How about we all take a lunch break now Xu, and put our heads together again afterwards?"

Xu muttered something darkly under her breath, but waved her approval to them, turning back to some charts spread out in front of her. Both Squall and Quistis headed towards the lift, but when Quistis looked at Nida expectantly he shook his head, glancing to where Xu was lost in thought. Quistis felt a little sorry for him. He seemed like a nice guy, but was so quiet and unassuming that he got lost in all of the everyday hubbub of Garden. He was going to have to try to stand out a lot more if he was hoping to get Xu to notice him. Still, it ought to help now that he was piloting...if only Xu ever noticed anything besides whatever was sitting on top of her desk. Quistis gave Nida a small smile as she and Squall were whisked away down below.

" Rinoa wanted to work on something with me? What is it?" _'Ah here there are again'_, Quistis thought as she stepped off the lift, _'those abrupt sentences of Squall's...I suppose if nothing else at least Rinoa is working to cure him of them_'.

"Actually, she's hoping to be able to start taking some classes here. Magic ones obviously, to help her learn control, but probably some basic combat training...she doesn't need help so much on her techniques as much as she does learning how to keep calm in battle and how to work fluidly with teammates."

"She did well when we were fighting Ultemecia."

Quistis shrugged. "Granted, but she's the one who's come up with the idea, not me. Besides, it couldn't hurt after all, could it? If nothing else, perhaps a few of the cadets will learn that she's not that evil and scary after all, and will begin talking to her. You know how much she wants that." Squall furrowed his brows, frustrated by the isolation the normally lively girl was suffering.

"Yes, you're right. In that case, I'll start processing her enrollment papers immediately, and start her off in-"

"SQUALL!" Squall pitched forward at an alarming rate, tackled from behind by the raven haired beauty herself. Behind them, Angelo barked and sat down, seemingly shaking his head at his mistresses' haphazard but well meaning actions. After catching himself, Squall turned to give her his best frown, but the moment he saw the nervousness in her eyes it dissipated, and instead he sighed, pulling her to him in a brief one-armed hug.

"Rin, do I even need to say what I'm thinking right now?"

'_Rin?_' Quistis thought, taken aback. '_Rin? He uses nicknames now? Honestly_?'

Rinoa shook her head, looking the very picture of loveable sweetness. "I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have, I just can't help it." She smiled at him, and Quistis fought to not gag at all the honey that was in it. '_I really do need to get out of here for a day or two...I'm getting more cynical than these people deserve..._'

Squall gave her that small, gentle little smile that he saved only for her and took Rinoa's hand. "It doesn't matter now," he said, continuing towards the cafeteria. "What I want to hear about is your idea. You told Quistis that you want to take some classes?"

"Oh, yes! Actually, I..." and with that she was off, telling Squall all about the research she had been doing and what she was hoping to accomplish. Just as they reached the doorway for the cafeteria, Quistis paused. She didn't really feel like eating.

Taking advantage of one of Rinoa's few pauses for breath, she caught Squall's attention. "Um...actually you guys I already ate...while I was talking with Zell earlier. You guys go on ahead and discuss things, I think I'm going to go back to my apartment and read for a little bit." Rinoa frowned at her, concerned, and even Squall looked a little disbelieving. "If you're sure Quistis, but you take care of yourself Ok? Good luck on your trip tomorrow."

Quistis nodded and smiled as she watched the two of them continue into the cafeteria and out of sight. It hurt a little, to watch those two. She didn't love Squall anymore, even if she ever had in the first place (and she wasn't sure if she'd ever know), but still, it must be nice to be able to talk to someone like that, with no fear of reprimand or embarrassment and about anything in the world at all. All of her best friends were busy now with someone else, when they weren't helping out with chores around the Garden. It was worse than being a third wheel, because she was a third wheel times three pairs. Did that make her a ninth wheel?

With only a little bit of difficulty, Quistis shook the pain from her mind. At the moment at least, she had something to distract her. No matter how silly and insignificant it was, she had a mission to prepare for.

**A/N: Oh. My. God. It's been over FOUR YEARS since I started this story. Hides her head in shame. The first half of this Chap. I started, as you can see above, when I started college. Like I said there, the story IS written I just...you know... ok, no, there are no excuses. I can only grovel at the feet of anyone who hates authors who dump stories...like me...can I grovel at my own feet? This is just getting messy... ahem Anyways, I do hope that now that I've gotten going again, I'll do this story justice and finish typing it up already! And if you are one of those blessed few who will read this, then do please review. (If nothing else, it's a great way to get your name out there, right? Not to mention, you have no idea how happy it would make me!!! And who doesn't want to make people happy? )**


	4. Donations Please?

Disclaimer: Let's just admit it. Everyone already knows that we don't own these, but we keep them up anyway because sometimes people come up with a really great one and it's fun to read, am I right?

**A/N: Holy cow, after so long I'm on a roll. The bad thing was there was an entire PAGE missing from my story, so I had to try to remember what happened and re-write it to fit with the pages that came after. Ugh. If you can't tell where, it means I did my job. Also, I realized something that I should have really **_**really**_** done last time, so I'll make up for it now: This chapter is dedicated to PrincessLorele, the only one who was kind enough to review when I first started writing this. I don't know where you are anymore Princess, but I hope that you get to see this! **

Promptly at 0830 the next morning, Quistis could be found waiting next to the entry door of the Ragnarok. It was true that she didn't have to be there so early, but she was anxious to depart. After years of intense battle training she had developed a second sense of when the elements around her were changing, rather like a sailor could sense a storm, and at the moment the feeling was welcome. She sat on the ground, tucking her legs under her, and brought out a book which she had borrowed from the library on _The Care and Keeping of Chocobos_. She had grown somewhat attached to the feathery things during their travels, and was starting to think that it might be nice to have one of her own, to go out riding whenever she felt inclined.

Twenty nine minutes and a handful of seconds later, the loud giggling and crashing sounds that were reverberating down the halls towards her told Quistis that her party had arrived. Cheerful (to say the least) Selphie with her shining green eyes and playful hair, favoring her yellow neck tie in its typical sloppy bow, although at least she had donned her uniform as they were technically on 'official' Garden business. She was being carried in by Irvine, who in his usual disregard for formalities was refusing to part with his duster and black cowboy hat, even as it was threatening to fly off with the wind. With his drowning blue eyes and model worthy hair, it was no wonder that he collected girls the way Quistis collected books, although so far he seemed to be keeping them all at arm's length, in favor of Selphie.

Gently, Irvine set down his madly giggling burden and kneeled down in front of her. "There your majesty!" He proclaimed, waving his hands about in a dramatic fashion. "You have been delivered to your carriage, and now what is your next wish, my queen, that I, your humble servant, might fulfill it?" Selphie clapped her hands together excitedly. "I want to wear your hat!" she cried. With a flourish he presented it to her.

Torn between exasperation and deep-seated amusement, Quistis shut her book and pushed her glasses farther up her nose, biting back a grin. "Honestly, what on earth is with you two? We are SeeDs who are being sent out as representatives of our Garden. Don't you think that it is possible to act like it for just one day?"

Selphie grinned as she jammed Irvine's hat onto her head. "But Quisty, today's a special occasion!" Irvine got up and brushed the dust off of his chaps, nodding. "Sefie finally beat me at cards." he admitted, hands spread wide in a 'what can you do?' manner. Irvine would only ever play cards with girls, and as the school's official lady's man (and thereby officially hated by the general male population) he always let them win too. The only woman that he ever actually played against was Selphie, and it was here that his true nature as a card player become apparent, as he soundly trounced her each time. Quistis shook her head. "So you have finally beat him at Triple Triad have you? Is this why he seems to be your slave?" dignity

"And that's not all!" cried Irvine dismayed, "Sefie says that I can't talk to any other girls today! She's being unreasonable!"

Selphie stuck her tongue out at him. "I am not being unreasonable Irvy! Just for today, I want to be the only girl you talk to!"

Quistis smiled as she led the way up the ramp of the Ragnarok, its reddish hue gleaming in the morning sun. "So is he not even allowed to speak to me?" she asked, teasing a little. Selphie waved a hand impatiently. "Oh, I said that he couldn't talk to any other girls Quisty. You're not a girl, you're a lady." As Quistis was left puzzling over the meaning of this statement, Selphie dashed in front of her and Irvine, her patience already run out. "Now let's get this show on the road! Bayooka!" She cried, running to the cockpit. "Bayooka!" yelled Irvine, chasing after her. "Sure thing, Bayooka." muttered Quistis, sealing the door.

Next thing she knew she was on the floor as the Ragnarok lifted up and took off like a gunshot, speeding off into the west. "WHOO HOO!" came Selphie's scream from the cockpit. Using the wall, Quistis pulled herself to her feet and ran to the front of the ship, where Selphie was piloting with Irvine leaning lazily against the wall behind her. Through the shield Quistis could see towns, forests, and mountains speed past, making her stomach lurch. Soon the objects below weren't even distinguishable anymore, and she didn't have the courage to ask how fast they were going: the Ragnarok could circle the globe in just over six minutes.

"Selphie!" Quistis cried, grabbing onto the co-pilot's empty chair as Selphie had the Ragnarok do a corkscrew. "Shouldn't we actually head towards our destination and, you know, stop there?"

"If we do, does that mean that you're going to make me leave the Ragnarok?"

"Well...yes." Quistis admitted.

"Then no, I don't want to!"

Incredibly, the Ragnarok picked up speed. Irvine, who hadn't been holding on to anything except for during some of Selphie's more daring maneuvers, was taken by surprise and crashed unceremoniously into the corner of the cockpit. "Yeah! Go Selphie!" he cried, though slightly dazed.

Quistis stared out the window: she was sure they had just passed Balamb Garden again. If they had, and if they had been maintaining a straight course, than this would make the Ragnarok's fastest time yet, at five minutes and forty three seconds. Unsure of how much faster the ship could go before it disintegrated in mid-air, and being completely unwilling to find out, Quistis leaned in close to Selphie so the other girl could hear her yell over the scream of the engines.

"You wouldn't even care if our first stop was, say, Trabia Garden?"

Mercifully, they started to slow down, until it was finally hovering a few hundred feet above the glittering waters of FH. Selphie turned around in her seat and gave the older girl an inquisitive eye. "And is it?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Bayooka! Then Trabia Garden, here-we-come!" Selphie punched a few buttons (they all looked the same to Quistis anyway) and they shot off again, just as fast as before. Even though Quistis had been holding onto the back of the chair, she felt the leather slide from her grip as she was suddenly hurtled backwards, narrowly avoiding crashing into the wall when Irvine threw out an arm and caught her, pulling her to him. "Why my dear Quisty, I didn't know you cared." he said with a smirk, acting surprised to suddenly find a 'lady' in his arms. Quistis struggled, embarrassed. "Irvine Kinneas, put me down!"

"What, you don't like to be held?"

"Not by you!"

"Irvy!" came a scream from the pilot's seat. "Put Quisty down NOW!"

"Yes ma'am." Irvine let Quistis go, standing her next to him so she had a convenient handle on the wall in case things suddenly got rough again.

"We're here." Selphie snapped, easing up on the controls. Quistis was a little taken aback by Selphie's sudden change in attitude, seeing as she was usually so abominably cheerful and they were on their way to Trabia on top of that. Assuming that it had to do with Irvine's antics, she decided to let the matter be and instead directed her attention to their landing.

"Don't park the Ragnarok right in front of the Garden, there wouldn't be enough room... besides, we don't want any passing students to see it either, or they might get ideas. Look, over there, that ought to do it. Bring it down in that copse of trees."

Selphie brought the Ragnarok down in the center of a small forest, a slightly rougher landing than usual (which was saying something for _her_ landings), branches breaking and crunching as she went. They disembarked, and made their way towards Trabia Garden. Quistis led the party, threading their way around the trees, her knee high black boots making deep impressions in the snow. Irvine and Selphie seemed headless of the direction they were headed as they argued, Irvine pleading for forgiveness.

"Pleeease Sefie? Come on, it was just a little joke!"

"Humph!"

"Oh come on Sef, I'm sorry! I promise that I'll be good! You're the only girl that I can talk to all day! Let me talk to you!"

"You can still talk to Quisty. Go talk to her!"

"But I don't want to talk to Quistis! I want to talk to you!"

"Oh that's nice." said Quistis, irritated. Irvine was now looking back and forth between them, flustered. "Dang it all, no Quisty, that's not what I meant...I mean-"

Things continued like this for awhile.

They had nearly made it to the Garden when a lone Mesmerize ambled out from behind some rocks, little tufts of snow getting kicked up by its hooves. Still in a bad mood, Selphie was looking for any excuse to let out some steam, and the monster made an obvious target. "It's mine!" she cried, whipping out her Morning Star nunchucks. Quistis let her run at it, but made sure to scan the creature before she got there. There were some surprising results.

"Um, Selphie...it's actually pretty strong.

"So?" Selphie asked, catching it in the back of the head with her Morning Star. Startled, it gave a furious snort and turned towards her, rearing up on its back legs.

"Well, are you junctioned to anything?"

Selphie dodged the flailing hooves. "Um...no. But why does it matter? We defeated Ultemecia! This guy is a piece of cake!"

"Yes, but you were junctioned then, and without any magic this is basically a fist fight for you...more Zell's expertise. Are you sure you don't want any help?"

"Yes I'm sure!" Selphie turned around to scowl at Quistis, hands on her hips. "I mean, c'mon, how hard could it- OW!" Taking advantage of Selphie's distraction, the Mesmerize had attacked, swinging the curved blade on its head in a slashing arch. Blood splattered on the ground and seeped freely from Selphie's shoulder to her elbow. Green eyes blazing like hell-fire, Selphie leapt at it vengefully. "YOU DAMN OVERGROWN 'MY LITTLE PONY'! YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"

Weapon flailing, attack after vicious attack landed home with either a sickening 'crunch' or 'thud' sound, and Quistis screwed up her eyes against the carnage. Instead, she started to mental review her stores of magic. '_Cura...cura...cura...curaga? No, I think that more powerful that what I need right now, I'll save it though, Hyne only knows when I'll need it... there's got to be a cura in here somewhere_.'

From the sound of it, Selphie was getting in some pretty good hits. She wasn't the only one who was though. "Eek! Stupid horn!"

"Uh...Selphie?" Irvine's voice. "Are you sure that you don't want any help darlin'?"

"Yes! Owie!! Grr...that thing is sharp! Take this! (_**Bam!**_) Ha! Got you, you little- Oh! My leg! Why can't it just-"

'_CRACK!_' A sound like thunder and shattering glass, and Quistis thought she could smell smoke. Intrigued, she opened her eyes. Irvine had shot. The bullet had gone straight down the horn, cleaving it in two before it shattered and fell to the ground. Selphie, free now from having to watch it so closely, moved in for the kill. After a moment, the Mesmerize lay dead on the ground, flecks of snow getting caught in its purple coat.

Selphie ran to Irvine and hugged him, all forgiven. "Oh Irvy! You saved me! Thank you!"

"Anytime for you Sefie." he said, putting an arm around her shoulders and frowning at the corpse. "It's too bad the horn is useless now though..." Quistis kneeled down and focused on Selphie's arm, casting the long sought cura on the wound. Casting another one after the bleeding had stopped, she nodded at Irvine. "It was a good shot though." Irvine grinned at her. "Isn't it always?" he asked cockily.

Quistis actually laughed a bit as Irvine helped her to her feet, and they kept walking towards the towering Garden which loomed in the distance. Last time that they had been to Trabia Garden was right after the missile attack. Then, they had needed to hop a chain link fence to get in, but now there was a gate in said fence, a welcome addition. Selphie ran ahead, presumably to find some of her old friends and classmates, while Quistis and Irvine took a moment to get a good look at all of the repairs which had been done.

The road had been cleared of debris and all of the weeds that had sprung up had been pulled or cut away. Dead trees and plants were chopped down to make way for new ones. Buildings that had lost a chunk of wall or ceiling had for the most part been rebuilt, several even had fresh coats of paint. Those buildings which had been completely ruined by the attack were torn down, the debris either disposed of or arranged into neat piles waiting to be carried away. In their place were grids of brightly colored string held up by wooden stakes, marking the floor plans of the buildings which would take their place. Everywhere around them there were SeeDs and Cadets alike, all looking rather overworked and underfed, exhaustion apparent upon every face. Quistis and Irvine walked behind a particularly sorry-looking bunch who were scrubbing windows, and both suddenly felt that their own Garden's plight was nothing compared to this.

Eventually they came to the stage, which had featured an unexploded missile stuck perpendicularly in it on their last visit; this time it had been removed, and the stage repaired. A boy with shocking red hair was standing on it, screaming hoarsely into a megaphone. "Please, please, if anyone has any gil at all, please donate it. I know that you have all been wrung dry, I have too, but please anything would help! Write to your parents and ask for donations, find a part-time job at the nearest town! We are going to re-pave the road next, once that's been completed we can bring in the equipment needed to start on the dorms! So if you have anything at all..."

"Blast it." Irvine muttered as they walked past, "I spent my last ten on gun polish." Quistis glanced into the tin at the red haired boys feet. It was pitifully low. She reached into the small hidden pocket on her hip, where she kept the remnants of the last SeeD allowance that she had received. "Here," she said, dropping 200 gil into the tin. "This is from me and the boy behind me."

At this, the red haired kid's eyes got huge and he looked like he was choking up, which made Quistis feel a little uncomfortable. "You two must be angels," he said "to come out of nowhere like this, and to give so much. Listen here!" he cried out through the megaphone, gaining new life, "We now have 247 gil! It will only cost 10,000 to re-pave the road! We're well on our way!" Quistis' stomach flopped at the sum. 10,000? That was hardly over 2 of the way there! At this rate, none of the cadets at the Garden now would live long enough to see the repairs complete, if the school's headmaster even saw fit to continue operation. With all these unpleasant thoughts in her mind, Quistis didn't even notice that her bouncy friend had returned until Selphie was right in front of her, calling her name.

"Helloooo Quisty! Whoohoo, are you in there? Earth to Ms. Trepe!" Quistis came back with a snap and looked down at her friend. "I'm sorry Selphie...what were you saying?" Selphie grinned at her. "Having a blond moment?" she asked, feigning innocence, then took a quick step back towards Irvine, waiting for Quistis' reaction. It was a well-known fact that Quistis abhorred blond jokes, a childish hate she knew, but they just drove her nuts. The fact that Zell seemed to make it his job to represent all fellow blond beings by telling as many of the darned things as he could only exasperated her further, his logic lost on her. Quistis satisfied herself this time by merely crossing her arms and tapping her foot expectantly, waiting for Selphie to inform her of whatever it was that she had come bounding up to do in the first place. Selphie took the hint.

"I found the headmaster! It's someone new though...the old one, well, you know how it is. Anyways, I asked someone to take a message for me, and they said she'd meet us in classroom 2A, since apparently the headmaster's office was one of the most heavily damaged." Quistis nodded. She didn't know 'how it was', but decided to let that pass for now. "Well then, it's very good of her to meet with us on such short notice, so let's not keep her waiting."

Quistis and Irvine didn't make it very far before they noticed that Selphie wasn't following them. Instead, she was still standing before the stage, looking up and listening to the Cadet's desperate calls with tears running down her face. Feeling guilty even as she did it, Quistis called to Selphie to hurry and join them. This time it was Selphie's turn to jump. "Just a second!" she called after them, fumbling with the buckle on her pouch. Quistis watched in shock as Selphie brought out a huge wad of gil from her bag and dumped it into the tin. The Cadet didn't just stop his screaming, he dropped the megaphone, which gave an electric scream as it hit the stage.

Jumping off the stage, he grasped both of Selphie's hands in his, mouth open in shock. "Oh Hyne you...you beautiful, wonderful...marry me!"

"NOW WAIT JUST ONE MINUTE HERE FELLER!" Irvine grabbed Selphie away from the boy, his blue eyes turned icy, and even his generally lazy drawl sounded sharp. "I'm glad that you see things my way and all, but your going to have to find your own!" So saying, he swept a very startled Selphie up and into his arms and rejoined Quistis, looking completely unabashed by his actions. "So," he asked, "where are we going now?"

**A/N: Yay! Long chapter! Or maybe it just seemed long to me. Anyways, I hope that all of you who are reading this are enjoying it. If you are, let me know!! Otherwise I might lose all hope and the story will die again...poor story, it's not its fault. Besides, I have a short Harry Potter fic that I wrote, and that one-shot has gotten more reviews than this story. Come on Final Fantasy lovers!! You're not going to let the Harry Potter people beat you, are you?! Well, are you? Review! Show them a thing or two: p**


	5. Casualty of War

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Never have, never will. -sad-

**A/N: Ok, this chappie here is dedicated to cerespallas, because she is wonderful and good and reviewed each of my chapters up to this point! Not to mention, she taught me how to edit chapters which had been up for several years; hence the newly edited and font fixed first chapter. (I will get around to fixing chapter #2 at some point, really) So...-throws a sorceress' parade in her honor- Now no killing any mindless masses! Anyways, **_**holy cow**_** long break huh? But I got it! It's up! Yay!! And bear with me please, dear readers, because it's either the chapter after this (or maybe the one after that, I don't remember) when things start getting way more complicated. And btw, this chapter is rated T for mild language. Just warning you! So please read and enjoy!! (And review? -kittykat eyes-)**

#

Quistis had seen war. She was on familiar terms with pain, despair, and death. What was new to her were the effects those things had on the people who were forced to face them day in, day out, for months. People who didn't have the luxury of moving to a new and undamaged place; but who had to stay and force a living out of the dusty, sterile earth. It was miserable to behold. Originally, Irvine had carried Selphie away out of protective jealousy- now she clung to him for comfort and support.

Still, there were signs of new life to come: a group of very young cadets were taking a rest from their chores of running tools and messages between the older students to make the most out of a singed and fragmented deck of cards, occasionally arguing over the identity of an especially damaged set. A macabre game to be sure, but the laughter and teasing which emanated from it was a relief to those who passed by.

Flowering weeds too had been suspiciously ignored, unlike their bare or thorny brethren. The unconventional splashes of color were almost cheering, as long as the twisted hunks of metal lying behind them were ignored. An idea formed in Quistis' mind then, and she filed it away to suggest to her own Headmistress: Balamb Garden was chocked full of aimless, excitable students, while Trabia housed those in desperate need of respite. It would be a simple matter to have Selphie make trips between Balamb and Trabia, bringing fresh workers to speed the reconstruction. While she couldn't offer assistance to Trabia's Headmistress without first obtaining permission from her own, she was certain Xu would accept, which helped to assuage her conscious of the guilt she felt for not having reached out to Trabia sooner. Irvine too looked uneasy, though he had done all he could to prevent the attack, regardless of his Galbadian heritage.

From Irvine's arms, Selphie gave them directions to the proper classroom building, and Irvine finally let her down so that he could reach for the door. The electricity was off, and vaguely Quistis wondered if it was being conserved, or if the power was simply out. Luckily there was enough light coming in from the glass-free windows that it didn't matter too much.

Maybe it was because they were no longer surrounded by wreckage from the attack, or because Selphie's sunshine personality simply couldn't be repressed; either way the bounce had returned to her step (and her hair) as soon as they were through the door.

"Ooh!! Lookie lookie! See this dent here?" Quistis and Irvine both eyed the spot well above Selphie's head suspiciously. Irvine whistled. "Nasty little piece a' work ya got goin' there." he said, reaching above Quistis to put a hand against the warped metal. "What happened?" Selphie shrugged as she continued up the stairs.

"That was my friend Maeve, the first day she practiced junctioning. She blew out the door, and the door took out the wall. Kablooie!!" She yelled, throwing her arms up in the air. Grinning mischievously at the start she gave her friends, she added, "Of course, she was a refugee from Odine's lab in Esthar, so the Instructor half-expected something like that to happen."

"Oh did he? That's, um, nice." said Quistis lamely, grateful that _she_ hadn't been the girl's instructor and wondering if Esthar really had anything to do with it. They made their way to the next floor and down a hall, until Selphie stopped them in front of a metal door labeled '2-A.' Quistis gave her troops the once-over.

"Remember, pretend that this is official business for once. That means standing at attention and not speaking until spoken to. And Irvine, I don't care if they've named you SeeD with honors since Ultimecia- you even think about flirting with the Headmistress and I'm feeding Exetor to Cerberus."

Irvine took a step back, one hand over the hilt of the beloved weapon hidden under his duster. "Ya wouldn't! Now see here Quisty, a sniper's gun is his life! It's like his mother, his lover, and his best friend all rolled into one! Ya can't just-"

"Irvy, if you call that gun your lover one more time, Quisty can do whatever she pleases with it. Besides, you haven't forgotten already, have you? You can't talk to any other girls anyway, so it doesn't even matter!" Selphie giggled, triumphant. Irvine threw up his hands in exasperation, his head hanging like a wounded dog's. "Alright already, I hear ya! I'll be on my best behavior- cowboy code of honor. Now let's have at it; either way it ain't polite to keep a lady waiting."

Quistis nodded and approached the classroom door, which slid open at her approach. Stepping inside, the SeeDs were presented with a scene of organized chaos. The usual desks had been haphazardly stacked one on top of another and pushed to the far side of the room, and boxes full of documents and other articles towered over them. The hum of magic in the air was almost tangible; so much so that Quistis felt compelled to do a quick _scan_ of the room. She would like to say that as SeeDs, they had nothing to fear from any Garden, but this was a fleeting whimsy- half the war had consisted of battling with and within foreign Gardens.

The spells cast within this room, however, were entirely benign. Obviously classroom 2-A was much more than a storage shed: it was also acting like a bunker or safe, guarding the Garden's charter, records, and Headmistress herself. The room was reinforced several times over with _wall_ and _reflect_ had been cast over the unshattered glass windows, effectively shielding its contents. Obviously, students at Trabia Garden had become jaded by the first unannounced attack. From what she had seen, Quistis didn't blame them.

Trabia's Headmistress was sitting at the only desk left in the middle of the room, looking down, tapping a pen unconsciously against a thick pad of Garden letterhead paper. Her red hair was cropped close to her head, and Quistis could see that she was several years younger than Xu- closer to Selphie's age. The paleness of her skin didn't appear to be natural; rather it looked like she had been recently attacked by a bloodsoul. Lost in thought, she didn't realize that she was no longer alone in the room until Quistis stood before her at attention and cleared her throat. Startled, she looked up.

It wasn't until this moment that Quistis realized something: she had no idea what the Headmistress' name was. Luckily (or unluckily, depending upon your point of view) Selphie took care of that for her. "Lucy? Is that you?! Oh Hyne, your hair...it was so pretty..."

For a moment, Lucy's face contorted into a look of pain. "There are worse things to lose than a couple of locks of hair, Selphie." she responded, reaching down and picking up a large, heavy-looking fighting staff from where it rested on the floor. "You must be the delegation from Balamb. I apologize for not coming out to meet you myself, but my...circumstances leave me with little alternative. I am Headmistress Lucretia. No need to introduce yourselves, your faces are plastered all over the papers. And please, stand at ease; I'm not use to this yet and all the formalities make me uncomfortable."

Gratefully, Irvine complied, tipping his hat to the Headmistress before taking it off, as they were indoors. Quistis nodded her approval. "Thank you very much for seeing us on such short notice Headmistress Lucretia, as I'm sure this is an inconvenience to you. It will only take a moment, and then we'll be on our way."

"It's quite alright, I assure you; I have no desire to continue on those letters anytime soon. So, what exactly is it that you three are after?"

Quistis was about to tell her, about to admit that it was a ludicrously simple yes or no question; but the words died in her throat. Using her desk for support, Lucy had pushed herself up, and was now moving towards them slowly, her staff acting as a crutch in replacement of the leg she had lost. Quistis felt strangely ill. Surprisingly, even in the militant world of SeeD, amputated or missing limbs were nearly unheard of. The reason for this was simple: arms or legs which had been mutilated in combat could be restored with magic, as long as the spells were cast within a generous amount of time- generally up to three or four hours. A living amputee victim meant one of two things: either she had been alone and was knocked unconscious during the attack, and thereby unable to perform a spell upon herself; or she had been buried in such close rubble that her magic was blocked, and her comrades unable to reach her. Judging by the stained bandages on her fingers, Quistis had a good guess as to which one it was. Lucy's weapon had become her support, and from this time forward much of her career would be spent behind a desk, until perhaps, if she wished it, she could learn to fight again. It wouldn't be easy...relying on magic more than science, as of yet there weren't a lot of medical options open for this sort of injury.

Selphie wasn't being of much help either. Always the type to wear her heart on her sleeve, her eyes were already glistening with tears and her hands were coving her mouth, horrified. Irvine could sense the sudden uncertainty in the room, and came to the rescue. He gave Lucy an easy smile and bowed briefly, with just a touch of the charming swagger which made him so popular with the girls back home.

"It's pretty simple ma'am," he admitted with a gallant shrug, "but we realize you're in a bit of a tight spot. Heck, we aren't doing too good ourselves, and Balamb is still in pretty good shape. So Squall, or Commander Leonhart, I suppose I should say, is wondering if you've put any thought into the future plans of this Garden. After all, it doesn't exactly look like SeeD will be needed any time in the near future, so we all might be in a bad way for awhile. 'Course, either way ma'am, rest assured that Balamb Garden will offer its full support."

A hauntingly sardonic smile flittered across Lucy's pale face. "The near future? I suppose that you have that part right. So tell me, what has your Headmaster settled on?"

"Oh, we'll carry on." drawled Irvine, doing his best to be casually reassuring. "Balamb's a fine home to many of the cadets. We gotta support that too."

Lucy turned away from them, awkwardly returning to her desk. "It's really that simple to you, isn't it? That's really as far as you've thought." She laid a hand on top of the stack of papers she had been writing on when they entered. "Do you know what these are?"

"Notification forms. Condolence letters." Responded Quistis, without thinking. "Standard procedure to inform family members of when a loved one has been killed, on or off duty, while under the jurisdiction of Garden."

Lucy nodded, gently fingering the top letter of the pile. "What do I tell them? What the hell do I tell them? That their child was blown apart, not even in battle, but taken completely unawares, by an enemy bitch who hasn't even been born yet? That'll go over real well." She turned and faced them again. "You tell your Commander and Headmaster-"

"Headmistress." Piped up Selphie suddenly. Lucy raised an eyebrow at her. "Whatever. You tell them that Trabia isn't anywhere near to finished yet. That we're going to wait, and rebuild, and when the time comes, we're going to kill that bitch. Because we see something that you don't yet: your sorceress friend might be under control -for now- but either way she's going to die one day, just like the rest of us. And her powers will pass on to someone else, who will pass them on to someone else, and so on. One day, their going to find some sick little girl who wants to make a name for herself. But we'll be waiting for her. When that day comes, we'll stop this. We'll stop all this from ever happening. She'll never get the chance to come back. And my classmates won't die. You tell them that...and then tell them that they're welcome to join us."

Irvine nodded. "Will do. We'll be on our way now ma'am, we understand that you have a lot left to settle for the day." He and Quistis both gave curt salutes and exited quickly, Irvine pulling Selphie along by the arm behind them. Selphie wasn't resisting, but she wasn't exactly being helpful either; staring back in shock at the woman she used to know.

"Sephie come on! It's rude to stare like that." Hissed Irvine under his breath, letting her go at the top of the stairs.

"But Irvy, what happened to her? She didn't use to be like that!"

"Think for a minute darlin'- her home destroyed, friends killed, she lost a leg for Hyne's sake and she's suddenly thrown into the position of Headmistress, under conditions where even the very best wouldn't have a clue of what to do. What would you expect?"

"Well, yes, but...but we didn't end up like that!" Quistis laid a hand on Selphie's shoulder. "Different people react in different ways Selphie. There's no way of knowing what might have happened under different circumstances. But, we found out what he needed, so let's head off for Galbadia, shall we?"

Selphie nodded and walked with them, but was apparently lost in thought. They left the building and started walking back towards the Ragnarok, silent until Irvine paused in front of the basketball court and asked a question:

"Do you think it would work?"

"That what would work?" Asked Quistis, looking back at him. "What the Headmistress said. Changing the past by changing the future. Ending it all before it even begins. Do you think it's possible?"

Involuntarily Quistis' mind flashed back to the corpses of SeeDs scattered along the beach outside Ultimecia's castle. The memory still made her feel slightly ill. "No," she whispered, her mouth dry, "I don't think it will."

"Oh." Irvine frowned. "That's too bad, but part of me can't help but be a tiny bit relieved. As horrible as it all was, I would never have found you all again if it wasn't for the battle...probably not, anyway."

"I feel sorry for her." Startled, Irvine and Quistis both turned towards the usually chipper girl, who at the moment looked more like she was about to cry. "For who? The Headmistress?"

Selphie shook her head. "For Ultimecia."

The other two SeeDs exchanged flabbergasted looks over Selphie's head as she wrapped her arms around herself. "Think about it guys: we may have defeated her last month, but really she hasn't even been born yet! And she's already got hundreds- thousands of people worldwide who want to see her dead. Can you imagine it? Being five years old, never having done anything wrong in your life, and having people trying to kill you!? It would be terrible! What would that do to a child?"

Comprehension dawned in Irvine's eyes. "It would turn her into Ultimecia."

"Oh Hyne..." Said Quistis, suddenly feeling very weak. "We created her, didn't we? We've set the world against a little girl, and her natural response will be to try to fight back, to try to save herself, to get revenge on those who hurt her...what have we done?"

Irvine shook his head vehemently. "No Quisty, we can't think like that. Did we start it, or did she? How many lifetimes ago does the answer lie? We'd be driven mad. All we can do now is keep livin', and to try to make this world the best we can. Alright ladies? Now come on, let's head back to the ship, and Irvine will comfort ya'll the best way he knows how."

Quistis frowned at him. "You're really a cad, you know that?" He grinned at her. "Perhaps...but I successfully changed the subject, didn't I?"

She was about to snap a retort, but before she could there was a loud crash and a shout to the left of them. On instinct, the three SeeDs pulled their weapons, only to find themselves face to face with two startled female cadets, standing on top of a large pile of dirt. One had dark skin and a long thick brown braid which swung past her waist; the yellow bow at her neck was heavily spotted with grime. The other was pale, with short dark curls and blue eyes partially hidden by glasses. Behind them, pink sparks drifted lazily into the air. For a moment the two parties simply stared at each other. Then chaos broke loose.

"Selphie?!" Yelped the braided girl, before charging down the hill towards them.

"Bridgid! Maeve! Oh Eden it's good to see you! You're alive!"

"You're not dead!"

"You grew out your hair!"

"You cut yours!"

"You've gained weight!"

"You're short!"

"OH HYNE I'VE MISSED YOU!" They both cried, clasping each other in a tight embrace. Behind them the glasses girl stood quietly, watching on with a small smile on her face. Quistis eyed her warily. '_Is that Maeve? The girl who blew out a classroom door? One little __**scan**__ couldn't hurt anything...I don't think she'll notice_.' Focusing, Quistis sent tendrils of magical energy towards the girl, only to watch aghast as her stats were pulled up for private viewing. '_Unknown, unknown, not applicable...good grief, what is this girl? At least with Ellone I could get a description. Did Odine have a hand in this? Maybe I should just let it go...'_

By now, Bridgid had released Selphie and was talking so quickly that it was difficult for non-hyperactive bystanders to keep up. "I had heard that you had visited, but we missed it! What are you doing here now?"

"Oh, now?" Selphie laughed nervously and waved the question away with her hand. "Nothing really, just boring SeeD stuff. Ha ha ha!" Bridgid laughed too, patting the much shorter girl on the head. "You're lying, you little Choco-twit. But don't worry, I won't ask. Instead you have to tell me: who's the hunky guy?"

"Oh him? He's my Irvy. And if you even think about touching him, I'll set Shiva free in your underwear drawer." Selphie had that adorable smile on her face that said that she would do that, more, and sing the 'Happy Train Song' while she did it. "Maeve! You're not saying anything! Quiet as always I guess, hmm?"

Maeve nodded. "The Commander asked us to uncover the draw point that was buried, which is why we're here." She mumbled, answering Quistis' unasked question. "Stupid third years." Added Bridgid darkly. "Whoever gave them permission to 'help out' with earth magic is as smart as a Bite Bug's behind. Anyways, I can tell that you have things to do, so we'll let you go. Bye Seph! Take care! Bye Seph's friend! Hunky guy, if you ever want a _real _woman, you know where to find me!" She ran off before Selphie could catch her, as Irvine painfully bit his lip to remind himself what he had promised Selphie only that morning.

Maeve had hung behind, fiddling with something in her hair. Finally she took it out and walked up to Quistis, placing it in her hands. "This will look very pretty on you." she said quietly, not giving the surprised Quistis a chance to respond before she left after Bridgid. Irvine and Selphie both stared at Quistis, curious.

"Well, what is it?" asked Selphie, bouncing up and down. "Maeve gives really good presents; they always come in handy. I remember this one time, she gave me a map of the Centra coast, and I was thinking, 'but I don't _need_ a map of the coast,' and then-" Ignoring Selphie's hyper-speed chittering away, Quistis studied the little gift she had been left with, only vaguely aware that Irvine was having to bodily restrain Selphie from snatching it out of her hands so she could see it better- not that he was complaining.

It was a simple red stone barrette, nothing more. Elegant in design, with what looked like a glittering fire stone carved into the shape of a small star, surrounded with a delicate halo of downy crimson feathers. "_Oooh_, pretty! Try it on Quisty!" Quistis shook her head. "It is very nice, but I can't take it. I don't even know her! I should go find her and give it back, and then we can go."

Irvine bent down to admire the barrette. "Just your color Quisty. I don't think -Maeve, right?- would have given it to you if she didn't want you to have it. She doesn't seem like that kinda girl. Now c'mon, try it on and let's get going. I'm eager to see my old Garden too ya know."

Quistis would have continued to protest, but her friends didn't give her the chance. As Irvine grabbed her hand and dragged her towards Trabia's gate, Selphie made short work of her hair; undoing and pocketing the clips which kept it in its customary up-sweep and letting the golden waves fall to their natural length of just below Quistis' shoulders. Resigned, she gave up fighting and allowed Selphie to pin back her bangs, silently wondering if she would ever get her hair clips back again, now that Selphie had finally gotten her hair down. Irvine glanced back over his shoulder and whistled.

"Quisty, if I didn't know any better I'd say you were the starlet of Deling's entertainment biz. Now why don't you let your hair down more often?"

Coloring, she snatched her hand out of his and glared. "I can walk by myself you know." She shot back, avoiding his question (albeit not very gracefully). Collecting herself, Quistis led the way back to the Ragnarok with Irvine and Selphie following. They were chattering away about something, occasionally broken by Selphie's giggles, and it wasn't just paranoia which made Quistis assume they were talking about her: it was well known that the dynamic duo had been plotting against her for some time. Allegedly, they had even started conducting interviews with select Trepies, all in the interests of pursuing not a double, not a triple, but a quadruple date night. It made her head hurt. Stupid SeeDs. If they sent another sappy idiot her way, she'd _blizzaga _him on the spot and make a lovely ice sculpture for her dorm room, regardless if it enhanced the 'Ice Queen' image she had been given by a spurned male.

Drifting along, her mind settled on other things. Specifically, the conversation with the Headmistress which had ended less than an hour ago. If it was possible -if things could be changed- they would know by now, wouldn't they? What would it mean?

She supposed that Irvine was right; that their orphanage gang wouldn't have been reunited, at least not then. Possibly not ever, if Irvine had continued SeeD training and lost his memories to the GF's as well. But would there even be SeeD? Squall had told them he had spoken of SeeD to a young Matron, who knew nothing of them. So that loop in time had established SeeD in the first place.

Speaking of Matron, she would never have been possessed. They would never have been forced into the cruel circumstance of having to fight her. And Seifer! He wouldn't be...gone, missing wherever he was now. He wouldn't have tried to battle them, to hurt them. Or maybe he would have. Perhaps, like the time he had given Squall that scar when he was down, destruction was just in his nature. With a heavy heart Quistis ascended the ramp of the Ragnarok, and moments later they were lifting up and flying out of sight.

**A/N: In the spirit of Final Fantasy, and in remembrance of the reoccurring characters Biggs and Wedge, I've put in two of my own characters from a different one of my fics. For anyone who's read my **_**Muggleborn**_** and recognized them, good for you! You get an extra ticket to the Deiling city opera house! And just so you know, all reviewers get a complimentary midnight chocobo ride with the FFVIII character of their choice :p **


	6. Comprehension Dawns

**A/N: I DID IT!!! I am finally caught up to the hand written pages, so things will A) flow more smoothly and B) move a lot faster, lol. I don't even want to remind myself of how long this took O.o -bows deeply- My humblest apologies…although it's SLIGHTLY better when I remind myself that I have updated my two other fan fictions in this time, so at least I haven't been utterly MIA. Anyways all, please enjoy, read and review! I'm still here, and I'm still writing! Take care all!**

The ride to Galbadia was significantly more subdued than the one to Trabia, their experiences there had left Selphie in a much more pensive state then normal and Irvine simply let her be, one hand gently toying with the fringed edges of her hair as she piloted. Quistis was quiet too, but for a different reason: She had a strategy to plan. Trabia had been a bit of a wake up call in some unpleasant ways- they couldn't just waltz in and expect everything to be as simple as it seemed. Three months ago that would have been the case, yes, but things had changed in more ways then they had realized; information which would be just as crucial to Balamb Garden's Headmistress and Commander as knowing the operating plans of the other Gardens....No, more so. After all, motivation was always a key factor in the art of war. Trabia Garden, however seemingly justified, was now running on the overwhelming and raging power of revenge. The only difficulty with that was revenge was a blind strength, much more likely to lead its adherents off a never ending cliff -or to a particularly bloodstained beach- then it was to victory and survival. It was understandable in its own way, because it was human...but that didn't mean it wasn't right. The question now remained, if Trabia was following such a path, which way would Galbadia lead?

If Trabia was the victim of the war, many saw Galbadia as its instigator. Whereas Garden was supposed to be a force against the sorceress, Galbadia Garden had harbored her, shielded her, been her base and her stronghold. Quistis was now greatly regretting not finding some way to learn of Trabia Garden's intentions regarding Galbadia...were they only casting their gazes towards the far distant future, or were they still not content with the casualties the desert-based Garden had suffered? _Oh Hyne, it could lead to a whole new civil war._…Determined to discuss this epiphany with Squall the moment they had returned the already short trip passed by in an instantaneous blur; an overly smooth landing hardly enough to jar her from her thoughts. It was Selphie and Irvine that did it, instantly creating a ruckus as they went to disembark, only this time the tables were reversed: At Trabia, it had been nigh on impossible to hold Selphie back- now Irvine was the one chomping at the bit.

"Seph, you've got to make an exception for me here, I've got friends I haven't seen in ages! Let me talk to them, please?"

"You can talk to anyone you like Irvy, as long as they are guys, that's all."

"But they're girl friends Sephie, that's the point."

Had the Ragnorak only been intended for earthly use, and not space travel as well, the resounding shriek probably would have cracked the windshield. "NO GIRLFRIENDS!" Quists groaned and waited for the ringing to stop as Irvine chased Selphie down the ramp, stumbling over himself trying to correct the alleged misconception. "They're not 'girlfriends' Selphie, they are just friends who happen to be girls! It's hardly the same thing!"

"With you it is!"

The elder SeeD sighed and followed, annoyed even if she could recognize the humour of the situation. She wished the two of them would just start dating officially -and exclusively- and thereby free the rest of the world from the round robin quarrels. It was obvious to anyone within hearing range what the two of them meant to each other, and yet for whatever unknown Hyne forsaken reason Irvine still didn't seem ready to settle down with one woman just yet. Quistis supposed she ought to give the man some credit for remaining as controlled as he did, considering that his sheer number of fan girls outweighed her Trepies in determination, if not devotion. On _Selphie's _Hyne forsaken end, for whatever reason she waited for him (albiet jealously and impatiently), but still she waited. Quistis wouldn't have been able to stand it, but that was Selphie for you…perhaps it was the fact that they had been best friends since they were four which allowed the other to overlook their differences (like the fact that Seph had a wedding magazine hidden under her pillow while Irvine probably had the latest 'Weapons Monthly' magazine under his). Either way, the tiff seemed short lived as Selphie once again claimed Irvine's cowboy hat as hers and raced off with it, the man himself chasing after her with a yell. Despite herself, Quistis laughed when Selphie tripped and fell, tumbling head over heels before Irvine bent to scoop her up mid-run and instead tumbled as well, the two of them lying sprawled on the ground, laughing.

So much promise for those two, so much tender teasing and laughter. A wave of loneliness and jealousy stole over her then, and Quistis fought it, willing to not be drug under. It seemed like everyone had someone, and she didn't. She wanted to know what it was like to be loved, just once in her entire life, was that too much to ask? Matron had loved her yes, but had given her up so easily to the first couple that came along...and that had been terrible. Not even the GF's had helped her forget the beatings she had received, not yet. Some of her Trepies meanwhile might be deeply infatuated, but that too was not love. What did it mean to be loved? There were days she thought she might never know. "Some people just aren't lucky enough to find out, I guess." she told herself, trying to calm down. "And I just happen to be one of them."

~ * ~ * ~ *

Several yards away, Irvine sat up suddenly and shaded his blue eyes with his hand, gazing into the distance. "Hey Sef," he said, poking her, "what's that look like?"

"Huh?" Selphie sat up, still holding Irvine's black (and very dusty) hat. "Um, it looks like..." She stood up. "Monsters! A-yup, monsters, and a lot too! Irvine, how many are there?"

"One...three, four...seven...seven! Boy...Selphie, have you ever heard of seven monsters grouped together like that?"

"No, not that many. Can we fight them Irvy, pleeeeeeeeeease?"

"Are you junctioned?"

"Um…." Selphie looked ready to argue the necessity of this fact, but the incident with the mersmerize was still fresh, and she hung her head. "No."

"Let's go back to Quistis. She only has two GF's junctioned, but she's carrying a few extras. Come on!" They raced back to Quistis, Irvine winning with his longer stride though he nearly crashed into her in his haste. She waited as they rambled, annoyed once more and hoping they would stop running over each other's sentences, practically tapping her foot in impatience. "What's the hurry?" She asked finally, giving up. "You're going the wrong way anyways, Galbadia Garden is in that direction."

"Quisty, we need GF's!" Selphie managed excitedly. "What for?" Quistis asked in response, although she was already transferring Carbuncle to Selphie, and Siren to Irvine. "Cause there are seven monsters just sitting over there, _waiting _for us to smash them to bits! Blow their brains to smithereens! Gut them like fishies! Peel their sorry hides and-"

"SELPHIE!" Shouted Irvine and Quistis in unison, snapping the girl out of her energetic tirade. Quistis contemplated this information for a moment, her brow furrowed. "Seven, together? Seven? That's unusual...I wonder why...well, either way, I say we do the area a favour and clean up this little mess, shall we?" They jogged towards the monsters, shading their eyes against the brightness of the sun to determine the species- jellyeyes, all of them. Not particularly strong, but tricky nonetheless due to the fact that they could change their elemental alignments mid-battle, an important factor since most of their attacks were magic based. It didn't take long for the jellyeyes to notice them as well, floating their way and evidently preparing to attack. Immediately Selphie summoned Carbuncle, the cute little GF poking its head out of its burrow and glancing side to side nervously, wondering what its handlers were up against this time. Quistis nodded her approval, ever the teacher, as it leapt into the air and bathed them all in the warm glow of Ruby Light before dropping and disappearing once more, a nervous if useful creature. Always eager to protect itself and its handlers from harm, the magic on which the jellyeyes relied would now bounce back and attack themselves, leaving the party vulnerable to only physical attacks, quite a relief. Irvine's hair smelled wretched after it had been singed by Fira.

Speaking of Irvine, Quistis half expected him to move next and summon Siren, but happily he didn't, proving his head was in the game. Yes, the alluring GF would do damage as well, but casting Silence on the jellyeyes would leave them with no other option but to attack...much better if they suffered the pain of their own spells first. Irvine leveled Exetor and took his shot at the closest jellyeye, which squirmed in pain but continued its approach regardless. An attempt at revenge was swift; before Quistis could attack a barrage of Blizzagas, Thundagas, Firagas and a rather paltry Fire from the juvenile surged towards them, causing Selphie to laugh with glee as the spells were returned to their senders. Quistis didn't give them any time to recover from the onslaught either, cracking her whip into the smallest jellyeye and ripping it open. It fluttered to the ground, dead, its blood staining the dust purple.

Enraged at the sight of their young fallen companion the six remaining jellyeyes attacked more viciously. Two bit Selphie as she rushed them with her Strange Vision nunchaku, managing a hit with her tricky weapon despite the damage. It was lucky that she attacked when she did, because all six remaining jellyeyes suddenly morphed, bodies twisting and turning in a kaleidoscope of colour. Selphie staggered and fell, hands outstretched as she tried to find her way up again. Quistis herself was reeling from the confusion of it all, and nearby Irvine was clutching at his stomach, a green tinge to his face.

Seizing their opportunity, the jellyeyes attacked. The same two went for Selphie again, while one flew at Irvine's face. The remaining three attacked Quistis, biting at her arms, legs, and neck. Irvine leveled his gun at the jellyeye just as it reached him and pulled the trigger, causing the creature to explode from the force of Dark Ammo, leaving Irvine free to rush and aid Selphie. Quistis' whip was useless against the jellyeyes now; a long range weapon in close quarters. She started to use the butt end of it as a club, hitting herself almost as often as she managed to land an attack on the monsters before her when three bright flashes of gold zipped past Quistis, narrowly missing her while striking and sinking into the soft flesh of the three jellyeyes, pinning them to a nearby rock. After a moment they stopped thrashing and lay still as blood oozed from their wounds, major organs severed.

Wavering, Quistis stared in utter shock at the bodies until a warm, bright light washed over her, her skin prickling with the sensation as her thoughts came sharply into focus. Past her she could see Irvine and Selphie, one jellyeye dead at their feet, the last being strangled by Selphie's nunchaku as she stood on it from behind- she had located her target and refused to let go, despite Irvine's calls to come down and let him finish off the thing in a much less dramatic manner. Satisfied that the two of them were no longer in any danger (and not eager to watch anymore of an enraged Selphie…she could be vicious) Quistis stepped nearer to the monster corpses on the wall, examining the shining gold which had been their final demise. They were seven pointed throwing stars, razor sharp. Not many people mastered this weapon, since what they offered in speed and efficiency they lacked in control and accuracy without intense devotional practice. "Hey Quistis!" Called a familiar female voice. "Could you bring those over to me please? I only have six left. That's the problem with throwing stars, you have to retrieve them. Maybe one day they'll return when called, like that thing Rin's got…."

Quistis moved to do as she'd been asked, working to free the stars from the rock and coating her gloves in slime and goo as she did so before turning and smiling up at the much welcomed visitors. Lily was sitting behind Zell on a daisy yellow chocobo, her arms wrapped around his waist. She let go of Zell and leapt off the chocobo's back to claim her weapons from Quistis, returning the smile. "Great aim Lily." Said Irvine admiringly as he and Selphie joined them, Selphie's bloodlust spent and replaced with that ever perky grin. "Those things must have been a half an inch from Quistis, and you didn't even knick her…and from the back of that bird beast nonetheless. Ever think of being a sniper?" Lily gave him a bit of a nasty, teasing smirk in return. "No thanks, I happen to think that hiding behind rocks and shooting at people who have no clue that you're there is the coward's way out."

Zell laughed as Irvine clutched at his wounded heart, giving Selphie an almost nervous flicker with his eyes…surely talking to a friend's girlfriend didn't count, though he worded it carefully to make sure. "Since you're a _lady _I'll let you get away with that one. Zell, what have you done to her?! She used to be such a sweet thing!" Zell grinned, a few strands of ungeled hair brushing against his tattoo. "Naw, I like 'em sweet AND spicy, like hot dogs with Dijon mustard." Almost wistfully he licked his lips, Lily whacking him on the knee since she couldn't reach any higher. "Always food on the brain." She muttered, rolling her eyes. "Well I've got a question on mine!" Called Selphie, checking the heels of her boots for jellyeye blood. "What on Gaia are you two doing out here?! We left you at Garden! Decided to make sure we did a good enough job huh? Tch, such a lack of faith!"

Zell pulled the chocobo away. "Wait Seph, no no! We've been sent out on a mission! It's just by chance that we ran into you."

"SeeD has been hired? By who? I thought no one needed us!" Quistis proclaimed, perplexed. "There's a really small village not far from here that's been attacked by monsters recently, strong ones…honestly, it's probably what's left over from the Luna Cry." Lily explained. "Even after saving they were only able to hire one SeeD. For some reason the Commander and Headmistress sent me."

"Then why did you come, Zell? They only hired one SeeD."

"Do you think I would let my Lil go off all along to fight? Nu-uh! I'm goin' to kick some monster butt with my baby at my side!" He smacked his fist into his palm, pumped and eager. "Squall gave me four days leave so I could help out without technically being a SeeD, and I'm planning to use it!"

Selphie nodded. "That's nice. You're going to do monster extermination, just like Sir Laguna!" She thrust a fist into the air as Zell furrowed his brow…he didn't seem to be listening. "Oh yeah…hey Irvine, I've got something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Oh? Well alright then partner, what is it?"

"Uh, girls? Could you excuse us for a moment?"

"You forgot to say the magic word!" Selphie cooed, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet. "Oh, right…uh, please?"

"Ok!" Selphie skipped off to water some nearby plants with magic, determined to make something in this Hyne forsaken dustbowl grow. Zell now turned to Lily. "Um…please?" He repeated, sheepishly. "If you get off that chocobo and let me have it." She replied, smiling. Zell instantly leapt off and picked Lily up, setting her on the bird's back as she giggled. "Man girl, you're just too light! When we get back to Balamb it's gonna be an all you can eat buffet! I don't like you being so light, you 're going to drift away on the breeze!"

"Zell! No, I'm watching my figure!"

"Yeah, well I'm watching your figure too (Lily blushed), and it's one of the finest in all of Balamb. I don't think you need to worry."

"Zell, I'm not going to sit and stuff my face. I said no."

"Tch, fine. Well, I'm going to! C'mon Irvine, I got something to tell you." The two boys strode off twenty paces and started to talk quietly, or Zell talked…Irvine mostly nodded, for once his expression oddly serious. Quistis watched them for a moment and then mentally shrugged before looking up at Lily hopefully. "Um Lily? Do you think I could try riding?" She asked in an uncharacteristically pleading tone. Lily brightened up. "Sure! It's fun! Come on up, I'll let you steer." She helped Quistis clamber up in front of her and showed her how to grasp the feathers properly to keep from sliding off. She was about to explain how to steer when Quistis gave the chocobo a little nudge with her heel, and they were off.

"Don't worry Lily." Quistis called over her shoulder. "I already know how to ride them, mostly." Lily sounded slightly surprised. "You've been on one before?"

"No." Quistis admitted. "But I've read all about it. I've always wanted to try this! I was never with Squall when he caught one."

"Ooh, I remember you checking out that book now! That was the day Selphie ran in and told me to meet Zell at the quad. Said he had something to tell me…aww, he was so nervous!" Lily giggled for a moment before blinking and sitting up. "Oh! Quisty, that reminds me, I almost forgot!"

"What is it?" Quistis asked, steering the chocobo away from the train tracks.

"Your library book…it's overdue."

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter!! Please R&R….all reviewers get to take home an Angelo puppy, surprise!**


	7. A Familiar Face?

**Disclaimer: If I owned SquareEnix, characters who mysteriously resembled close family and friends would somehow appear within the games… and old bosses and teaches would be baddies. Mwhahaha!**

"Well, what is it?" Asked Irvine impatiently, watching the girls chatter and giggle out of the corner of his eye. Zell shuffled his feet. "It's, uh, well ya see..." he rubbed the back of his head, mussing the carefully gelled spikes. "Lil's sweet 17 is coming up, and I don't have a clue what to do! Ya gotta help me man!" So saying he grabbed Irvine by the shoulders, shaking him violently and causing Irvine to grab onto his hat with one hand before it flew off. "Hey, hey!" Irvine cried, shoving Zell off with his other free hand. "No problem, good grief! Just leave it to 'Mr. Romance'. I'll fix it all up for ya. How long have I got?""Uh, a week?"

"I can do that, no prob. And uh, Zell, it's sweet 16, not sweet 17."

"Nope, every birthday of Lil's is sweet ta me!" Zell said proudly. "Thanks man! You're a lifesaver. Oh, yea, almost forgot..." He leaned back in and lowered his voice. "Before Lily and I left, we overheard Xu and Squall talking. I stayed behind ro listen." Zell, more accomplished at gossip and eavesdropping than half the girls at Garden, lowered his voice even further. "You're going to be a SeeD man!" Irvine's eyes shone. "Really? You're sure? But I...I haven't even taken the test yet!"

"Tch! You helped to defeat Ultemecia man! That's a bigger test than I had to take. And they're going to let you skip the written part."

"Oh praise Hyne." Irvine breathed. "I don't think I would have passed that one. Not without Selphie whispering the answers to me." Zell chuckled, then quickly sobered. "Don't tell the others yet though, 'cause you're not supposed to know. I don't want Quisty writing me up for eavesdropping...again."

As if on cue, Quistis and Lily rode up on their chocobo. "Are you two finished with your 'guy talk' yet? It's 15:15, we really should make our way to the Garden." Following her own advice she reluctantly got off of the chocobo, and gave it a pet just as Selphie ran up to join them, hugging the chocobo around the neck. "Awww, hewoo wittle chocobo!" In response, the chocobo cooed and rubbed its head up against her shoulder, causing her to giggle. "Awe see? It likes me! Okay, bye bye chocobo!" Selphie started to walk away, but the chocobo (still with Lily on its back) followed her. "Hehe, how cute! I made a friend!" Grinning, she looked down at her chocobo-yellow dress. "Heeey...maybe it thinks I'M a chocobo!" She burst into a fit of giggles. "Hey, chocobo! Chirp chirp! Chirp chirp!" In turn the chocobo looked positively delighted. "Wharble wharple." It responded.

"Wobble wobble!" Selphie mimicked. The chocobo turned around three times, jumped up and down (Lily almost fell off), and started to sing as it swayed to and fro. It was like a loud, billowy, very pretty electric dishwasher, for those of you who could imagine what that sounds like.

Selphie was thrilled. "Aww how sweet! It's singing to me!" She swayed back and forth to the music as well, smiling to herself, but Quistis was perplexed. "I...I think I read about this in one of the library books." She said to the others. "I think this is a chocobo mating dance."

"WHAT?" Selphie had overheard. Zell busted up laughing, holding his stomach and leaning against a rock for support. "Ha! Sephie's got a boyfriend! You were right Sef, he really does like you! Ha!" He fell to the ground and started banging it with his fist as he laughed, creating cracks in the dry earth. Irvine was holding on to his gun for support, and even Lily was giggling madly atop the love-struck chocobo backed up. The chocobo followed, still singing. She went to the left, and it did as well. To the right, and it followed. Giving a little shriek Selphie turned and ran to hide behind Irvine, then behind a rock, then on top of the rock, all the while the chocobo chasing happily after her. "Quisty!" Selphie cried anxiously, trying to avoid the chocobo's attempted nuzzles. "What do I do?" Somehow, Quistis managed to speak through her laughter. "Well, um, it- it thinks you're a...a...chocobo-" (here she had to pause as she burst into another fit of laughter) "Probably because you're yellow, so...""Quick Sefie! Take your dress off!" Shouted Irvine up to her. "Oh! Right!" Selphie's hands flew up to her shoulder clasps, then she stopped and blinked. "Wait...Irvine, you jerk!" She hissed at him but he was too busy howling with laughter to care, although he'd probably end up paying for it later. Quistis tried to collect herself and clear her head- they had to go. _'Well, when in doubt...use magic._' Muttering to herself she checked her stores, until she located and selected the perfect one, crossing her arms from her and pushing the energy forward and away, directed at the chocobo. A cloud of blinding smoke appeared around its head and it began to squawk, alarmed. Freed, Selphie jumped off of her rock, ran to Irvine, kicked him in the shins, and ran to hide behind Quistis while the cowboy swore and rubbed his leg, hobbling slightly. Zell laughed and took the chocobo by the reigns. "We'll wait until Sefie is safely out of sight, and then give him some eyedrops. Bye guys, see ya!" Zell and Lily waved and started off while Quistis, Irvine (who was still limping), and a very relieved Selphie continued towards the Garden. "Geez Seph!" Irvine muttered. "You're turning into Fujin!" Selphie giggled in response, shaking her head, hair swishing. "NEGATIVE!"

Slowly the top spires of Galbadia Garden came into view, everyone increasing their guard level a bit, just in case. Quistis had never cared much for this Garden; she felt that the former headmaster and his staff had greatly abused their power...as well they had. They were rude, inconsiderate, crass, arrogant, and to put it lightly, brutish. Regardless, Quistis headed down the rocky slope towards the Garden, occasionally sliding on a bit of loose gravel or sand with Irvine and Selphie picking their way along behind."Whoa!" With a bit of a cry, Selphie tripped and crashed into Quistis, who promptly lost her balance as well. They both started to tumble, when a pale white cushion of air appeared below them and they stopped, inches from the ground. "Really now," Irvine drawled, pulling the ladies by the arms so they could walk upright on the spell, "you girls complain, but you'd have an awful lot more bumps and scrapes if it weren't for me. Why, I remember-""Kinneas? Irvine Kinneas? Hey cowboy, you're back!" A tall blond boy was standing a dozen yards away on top of a rock, waving to Irvine. Irvine covered his eyes with his hands to see better and then broke out into a wide grin. "Shay Amont? Good to see you, man!" Irvine waved back, then broke into a run towards the rock just as Selphie was jumping up to grab his attention; the sudden movement knocked her over with a squeak, and she would have fallen -again- if she wasn't caught by the float spell first. Grumbling, blowing a lock of hair away from her eyes, she glared at Irvine's retreating back. Sighing, Quistis helped pull Selphie up while the miffed girl muttered to herself. "Actually, I think we get into MORE scrapes when Irvine is around." Quistis opened her mouth to argue, paused, then shut it. Sadly, she had to agree.

* * *

Reaching him finally, Irvine waited til the blond jumped down from his lookout point to slap him on the back. "Shay, how have you been?" he asked, happily. "Great, I'm just glad to know that you're not dead...you wouldn't believe all the conflicting reports we got! I thought you would be back in, oh, a week at most, but Hyne it was months! When we weren't getting death reports it was all propaganda junk, like 'traitor to Galbadia' and Hyne only remembers what."

"Whoa, I didn't realize they were seeing me as that much of a threat. Hey, do you still have all my stuff? Or was it just all confiscated and burned?" Irvine flinched slightly as he spoke, not liking the idea of loosing old guns and clothes, even if technically he didn't need them anymore anyway. "Naw, I've got them tucked away. They came for it all a few days after you left, but I told them I chucked it over the side once we started flying...they fell for it alright, didn't bother with a scan. I was worried they were going to assign me a new roommate, but they never did. Don't think we had the time...or the people, once all the fighting _really _broke out. We had some deserters too, when Edea showed up and took things over. Hey, speaking of which, a couple of kids swore up and down that you and some cadets from Balamb were here, and that you all fought Edea! Is that true?"

"Oh man, is it! You wouldn't believe-" And Irvine was off, describing the epic glory of the battle, and his grossly exaggerated part in it. Shay listened patiently for a handful of minutes before he interrupted. "Irvine, the way you talk, you were the only one there, were invincible, and had one hand tied behind your back besides. Tell the truth; were there really Balamb people with you?"

"Uh...ok fine, yeah actually, but you wouldn't know them so it wouldn't matter. This quiet guy named Squall was our leader, and his now-girlfriend."

"That's it? But I heard there were six of you! Little brats lied..."

"Huh? oh, well we were the three who actually fought, but there were three more who were around, for backup. A guy named Zell, and those two over there." He pointed at the girls, who by now were only a good 30 feet off. "The blond there in the pinkish orange, that's Quistis; she seems severe and all, but she has a lot of work, so I guess it's natural. The brunette in yellow, that's Selphie, and she's a real bundle of joy."

"She...wow, she's really beautiful."

"Hey!" Irvine glowered. "Don't go there partner! I haven't told her yet, but I have my eye set on Selphie. We were made for each other. Find someone else!"

"Oh no not her! I, I meant Quistis..." His voice trailed off and his fair skin turned a light shade of red. In response, Irvine started. "You think she's pretty?"

"No, beautiful." Irvine grinned. This was just too perfect. "Don't you worry Shay!" He said, slapping him on the back. "I know more about ladies and love than cupid. And let me tell you, Quistis? She's a _real_ lady."

Moments later Selphie bounded up to Irvine and raised her hand; Irvine flinched, thinking she was going to slap him. Then he saw the cut on her wrist. "I got a boo-boo!" She simpered, looking up at him with pleading eyes. In his element, Irvine grinned back, then quickly took on a dashing and sympathetic air. "Aww here, let me kiss it and make it better." Selphie giggled happily as Irvine swept her forward, covering her wrist in kisses.

"Ahem." Quistis stood just behind, holding herself with an almost regal authority as she reminded her party that they were, after all, here for a purpose. "We need to find the headmaster."

"I-I'll take you there, sir." For the first time, both the girls turned and took a good look at Shay. Quistis raised an eyebrow inquisitively, but Selphie's eyes grew round as she took in the man's appearence...the blond hair, the pale skin, the green eyes... "Um, Irvy?" She started quietly. "Come here, I want to ask you something."

"Hold on a sec Sef, I need to introduce-"

"NOW!" Selphie grabbed Irvine's hair and dragged him away, ignoring Quistis' and Shay's annoyed and stunned stares, respectively. "Sef, ow! Whaddya-"

"Irvine, that's Seifer! Get rid of him! The three of us can take him on! Wait, what if Fujin and Rajin are here too? What's he up to? Argh!" For a moment, Irvine just stared at her incrediously. Finally he blinked. "You think that's Seifer? That's not Seifer, that's Shay. He was my roommate at Garden."

"That doesn't mean you can trust him! He might be Seifer in disguise!"

"Trust me Sef, I know the guy, and he ain't Seifer. He's just as nice and studious as can be."

Selphie frowned...it was true, nice and studious did not sound like Seifer in the least. "Ok, um, well, how long was he your roommate?" Irvine shifted and rubbed the back of his head with his hand, causing Selphie to instantly narrow her eyes in suspicion. "Er, about a week I suppose."

"A week! Ok, that's it, he's gotta be Seifer, let's just march over there right now and bash in his stinkin' little-"

"Selphie, look at him! I mean close. Does he have a scar? No. Is looking like Seifer a crime? No. And we ran into that Seifer guy a half dozen times after I joined the party, while Shay has been here the whole darn time. Besides," he added on sudden inspiration, "he thinks Quisty is hot." In an instant, Selphie's whole attitude had changed. "Ooh... wait, really? Seriously? That could be awesome! Ok then, if he's really NOT Seifer, then let's go hook those two up!" Grabbing Irvine's hand, Selphie dragged him back after Quistis and Shay, who were by now entering the gates of Galbadia Garden.

* * *

Quistis watched Selphie and Irvine leave with annoyance clear in her gaze, before the look was wiped clean away and she turned her attention to the SeeD in front of her. The familiarity screamed at her, but it was still something she was able to suppress- there was too much different in the eyes. Seifer's eyes were full of self assured arrogance, rebellion, and bitterness. These were nervous, but determined nonetheless. Quieter, more reserved, willing to take orders, yet somehow confident, in their own way. Quistis was tall for a woman, but she still had to tilt her neck quite a bit to meet his gaze. "You were saying?" She reminded him, voice and expression stern. She wanted him to understand that she was in charge, and that her group, (Irvine especially) had work to do.

"I said that I'll escourt you to the headmaster, miss...?"

"Trepe. Officer Trepe." She held out a velvet gloved hand, and he shook it with his own rough one...must have seen hard times. "Officer Trepe." He repeated quietly, keeping her gaze. That look; she just didn't understand that look. Feeling almost uncomfortable now, she pulled her hand away and cleared her throat. "Well then, lead the way." Turning, she followed him the remaining way into Galdbadia Garden's courtyard, when Selphie and Irvine finally caught up to them. Instantly the two troublemakers set to work.

"Quistis, I don't believe that you have been formally introduced to our tour guide here yet."

"Oh, yes I have."

"No, no you haven't... Quistis Trepe, may I present Shay Amont of Galbadia Garden, 1st class expert with the dual bladed trident." At Irvine's introduction, Quistis allowed herself a brief moment of surprise. There was no one in Balamb (as far as she could recall) who weilded a trident... they were impressive, but required an amount of balance which few possessed, and were combersome to many due to their length. Then again, Amont was rather tall himself. She shook this off, trying to stay focused. "It's a pleasure, Mr. Amont… now if you please, the headmaster?" In response, he bowed her through the sliding red doors. "After you."

Shay led them down several corridors, through the quad, and then up a flight of stairs. Quistis eventually found herself in the same room that they had all wound up in after meeting Headmaster Martin the first time, although this wasn't strictly surprising. She probably could have found it on her own, really. She and Selphie headed straight in, but Irvine caught Shay's shoulder and held him back. "I'd like to grab my stuff while we're at it, if y'all don't mind, and we can even tell the headmaster who's waiting for him, Quisty. Be back in a jiff. Adieu, mon amour!" Selphie swooned as the boys left, but Quistis was already focusing on what she was going to say and did not catch the lingering look in Shay's eye. Flopping onto a nearby couch, Selphie sighed.

"Isn't Irvy romantic?" She asked dreamily. Quistis didn't reply at first, until instinct told her that she was being watched. Frowning, she turned to look down at Selphie, who in turn quickly turned to play with some fake flowers sitting in a vase. "But you know, that Shay guy was kinda cute." For a moment Quistis just blinked at her chipper friend, utterly confused... surely Selphie wasn't interested in some guy she had just met over her childhood sweetheart?

Apparently not getting the reaction she was looking for, Selphie went on. "Well-built, tall, smooth...yea, he's a catch alright. What do you think Quisty?" Finally, a bit warily, Quistis found her tongue enough to speak. "Mr. Amont seems to be a thoughtful and well focused young man."

"Well yea that too, but don't you think he's cute? Hot? Handsome?"

"I have no opinion on the matter."

Sighing again, Selphie slouched further in her seat. This was going to take some work.

**A/N: Woot! New chapter up! It's amazing how much work editing takes even when something is written, lol. Anyways, the plot thickens…. Please read and review!**


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